Lead-Based Paint: Disclosure of Known Hazards
Andy Trent, Project Leader
Introduction
This is the fourth in a series of Tech Tips dealing with lead-based paint. This Tech Tip will describe the Disclosure Rule for lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards.
Federal Laws: 40 CFR Part 745-Disclosure of Known Lead-Based Paint and/or Lead-Based Paint Hazards Upon Sale or Lease of Residential Property. Congress passed the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, Title X (Title Ten), to protect the public from exposure to lead from paint, dust, and soil. Section 1018 of the act directed the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to require disclosure of information on lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards before housing built prior to 1978 could be sold or leased. The rule would ensure that buyers and renters receive the information they need to protect themselves and their families from lead-based paint hazards. This rule applies to "target housing," which includes most private and public housing, including Federally-owned housing that is sold or leased. This act went into effect on September 6, 1996.
Requirements
- Sellers and landlords must disclose known lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards and provide a report to buyers and renters.
- Sellers and landlords must give buyers and renters the pamphlet developed by EPA, HUD, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), titled Protect Your Family from Lead in Your Home.
- Buyers have a 10-day period to conduct a lead-based paint inspection or risk assessment at their own expense. The rule gives the two parties flexibility to negotiate key terms of the evaluation.
- Sales contracts and leasing agreements must include certain notification and disclosure language.
- Sellers, lessors, and real estate agents share the responsibility for ensuring compliance. This rule does not require any testing or removal of lead-based paint by sellers or landlords.
- This rule does not invalidate leasing and sales contracts.
Types of housing excluded from the rule include:
- Housing built after 1977 (the CPSC banned the residential use of lead-based paint in 1978).
- Zero-bedroom units including efficiencies, studio apartments, and dormitory housing.
- Housing leased for less than 100 days, such as cabin rentals, or short-term rentals.
- Rental housing that has been inspected by a certified inspector and found to be free of lead-based paint.
Forest Service Responsibilities
The Forest Service's responsibility is to ensure that all occupants of affected government housing are notified of any known lead-based paint hazards, are provided the required pamphlet Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home, and that they sign a disclosure acknowledgment statement (Figure 1). In most cases, since no records or reports pertaining to lead-based paint exist, that's what the disclosure statement will indicate. This rule applies to rentals as well as units that are being excessed or sold by the Forest Service. Rentals include leased living quarters occupied by Forest Service employees.
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| Figure 1--Sample disclosure form. |
Where to Get More Information on the Disclosure Rule
You may obtain additional information on the disclosure rule by contacting the National Lead Information Clearinghouse (NLIC) at 1-800-424-5323. The pamphlet Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home is available from the Clearinghouse, or electronically over the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/lead. This web site provides not only the pamphlet, but also sample disclosure forms and other information related to the Disclosure Rule.
Next in the Lead-Based Paint Series...
Lead-Based Paint: Lead Exposure in Construction will be a detailed description of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's rule for "Lead Exposure in Construction."
Hard copies of this document may be ordered from:
USDA Forest Service
Missoula Technology & Development Center
Building 1, Fort Missoula
Missoula, MT 59804-7294
Phone: (406) 329-3900
Fax: (406) 329-3719
For further technical information, contact Andy Trent at the address above.
Phone: (406) 329-3912
Fax: (406) 329-3719
DG: A.Trent:R01A
E-mail: /s=a.trent/ou1=r01a@mhs-fswa.attmail.com
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, and marital or familial status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication of program information (braille,
large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202)
720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture,
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. 20250, or call 1-800-245-6340 (voice) or (202) 720-1127 (TDD). USDA is an equal employment opportunity
employer. The Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, has developed this information for the guidance of its employees, its contractors, and
its cooperating Federal and State agencies, and is not responsible for the
interpretation or use of this information by anyone except its own employees.
The use of trade, firm, or corporation names in this publication is for
the information and convenience of the reader, and does not constitute an
endorsement by the Department of any product or service to the exclusion of others that may be suitable.
This page last modified October 1, 1999
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